Climbing the Abstract Syntax Tree

The new Abstract Syntax Tree (AST) in PHP 7 means the way our PHP code is being executed has changed. Understanding this new fundamental compilation step is key to understanding how our code is being run.

To demonstrate, James will show how a basic compiler works and how introducing an AST simplifies this process. We’ll look into how these magical time-warp techniques* can also be used in your code to introspect, analyse and modify code in a way that was never possible before.

After seeing this talk, you'll have a great insight as to the wonders of an AST, and how it can be applied to both compilers and userland code.

My entire Uni course in compiler design flashed by in less than an hour. Where were you 30-odd years ago when I was given a syntax specification, an input source file, and the assignment "write a lexer, parser and compiler (in pascal !), and when done, run the source file and hand in the results"... ;-)